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Book Montage

Monday, March 15, 2010

Best Teen of 2009

Postively, Absolutely the Best Young Adult Books of 2009. Guaranteed.
a book list by Flashlight Worthy's Favorite Young Adult Book Bloggers

Young Adult books, as a genre, has enjoyed a recent resurgence. It started with Harry Potter, survived a lean year or two, and then leapt back into the spotlight with Twilight.
But good Young Adult — or YA as it's known — is far, far more than just wizards and vampires. That's why I turned to the experts, more than a dozen Book Bloggers who focus on Yound Adult books, and asked them to name their pick for the Best Young Adult Book of 2009. Enjoy.

Eyes Like Stars: Theatre Illuminata, Act I by Lisa Mantchev
Adele from Persnickety Snark says: Reading this book was like being dunked in a bath of classic literary characters, impish delight and roguish charm - it was delicious.
The magical Theatre Illuminata is a world where the surprising is always creeping up behind you, the bizarre is whirling around and in its centre is the spunky Bertie. Mantchev mines great plays of the past for their more fascinating characters and makes them contemporary in a fantastical setting... it's miraculous. Eyes Like Stars has great heart and humor amidst the distracting glitter and that's what makes this title such a smashing read.

Secret Keeper by Mitali Perkins
Sherry Early from Semicolon says: Secret Keeper is a tale of love and loss, of traditional family and of new ways and mores creeping into and disrupting the old conventions. It’s a story that bridges cultures and creates understanding and makes even WASPs like me feel a twinge of identification with the characters and their very human situations.
The main character of the novel is sixteen year old Asha, the younger of two daughters in the Gupta family. As events unfold, Asha depends on her diary, nicknamed Secret Keeper, to hold her thoughts and dreams and to keep her sane in a tension-filled household.

Lips Touch: Three Timesby Laini Taylor
Lenore from Presenting Lenore says: It's not a novel, but a collection of 3 short stories that all revolve around dangerous kisses. The first story, Goblin Fruit, was hands-down the best piece of writing I read in 2009. Its perfection is so intoxicating and amazing that I read the story several times in a row — once even out loud to savor the language.
The story concerns Kizzy, an "urgent, unkissed, wishful girl" growing up somewhere slightly outside modern day suburbia with her large, odd family of gypsies. Although her grandmother has warned her about goblins — and never tasting fruit out of season — Kizzy is charmed by a gorgeous new boy, Jack Husk, bearing a picnic of likely unearthly delights.

The Ask and the Answer: Chaos Walking: Book Two by Patrick Ness
Nymeth from things mean a lot says: The sequel to Patrick Ness' The Knife of Never Letting Go is perhaps not quite as fast-paced as the first book, but it's just as intense. Todd and Viola's journey takes them — and the reader — to uncomfortable places, but great literature, after all, is often all about asking uncomfortable questions. Terrorism, violence, propaganda, sexism, control, fear, the dehumanizing effects of war — they're all carefully examined here. If this sounds dark, it's because it is. But it's also one hugely enjoyable book.

Gentlemen by Michael Northrop
Leila from Bookshelves of Doom says: Gentlemen, a hard-boiled noir story set in high school, doesn't offer the usual fast-paced action adventure, but instead, an utterly believable narrator who spins out a slow build of tension that will have patient readers white-knuckled and sweating by the final, climatic scene. It's easily my favorite book of 2009.

The Demon King by Cinda Williams Chima
Patti C from Oops...Wrong Cookie says: This story of The Demon King is set in world where magic is a powerful presence. There's clan magic — tied to the earth and used for healing. And then there's wizard magic — which is a magic that must be controlled and channeled with talismans. Over time, these magics were bound together in a complicated and dark history... and now there are those who would like nothing more than to once again break them apart.

Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker

Sarah Rettger from Archimedes Forgets says: In Written in Bone, author Sally Walker tags along with archaeologists excavating settlements from the earliest days of colonial Virginia and Maryland — settlements where human remains now offer some stories of the past. Walker tells the stories of colonists from all walks of life, from members of the governor's family to indentured servants and slaves. Although we'll never know all the details of these lives, the book shows how much we can learn through research and analysis.

Willow by Julia Hoban
Alea from Pop Culture Junkie says: Willow is a real, honest, and emotional book. From the moment you pick it up, you're invested in Willow and her well-being. Not only is this story about grief and guilt, it is about love and never giving up... it's beautiful.
I don't want to talk too much about the plot itself because I think this is one that's best discovered as you read, as you let it reveal itself to you. Reading Willow was definitely one of the most enjoyable reading experiences I've had in a long time. Every time I had to put the book down I daydreamed of picking it back up and re-joining Willow's world.

Cracked Up to Be by Courtney Summers
Steph Su from Steph Su Reads says: Courtney Summers' straight-up prose in her debut novel is unlike anything else that's out there in YA. It doesn't deluge you with florid descriptions of setting or character, but rather drops you into a story where you're literally assaulted with some of the most frightening of raw emotions: horror, fear, disgust, suspense, and — just perhaps — redemption.
I always say it's not the characters that matter, but the way in which the characters, good or bad, are presented to us. Parker and her "friends" are just like that group of popular, backstabbing social royalty students you knew/know in high school, and yet you will find yourself inevitably caught up in the story, breathlessly looking through Parker's eyes as you impatiently read to finally understand what's going on. Courtney's writing talent is the kind that sticks with you long after you've finished reading.

Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith
Ali from Worducopia says: This book is fabulous in its depth and character development. It features a strong female protagonist who walks a fine line between two worlds and ends up in over her head. It's historical fiction, set in World War II, that has contemporary appeal, and the author doesn't shy away from the racism that underlies so much of what happened during that era.

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco Stork
Doret from Thehappynappybookseller says: One of my favorite handsells of 2009, Marcelo in the Real World is classified as Young Adult, but it's a lovely story for adults as well that shouldn't be ignored because of classification.
I was initially drawn to this book by Dan McCarthy's beautiful and irresistible cover and the beauty continues inside: 17-year-old Marcelo has a mild form autism, classified has Asperger syndrome. Marcelo's father wants his son to work at his law firm for the summer and get a taste of the real world. Francisco X. Stork created an amazing and unforgettable character in Marcelo.

The Dust of 100 Dogs by A.S. King
Lenore from Presenting Lenore says: This high concept, genre-bending mix of historical fiction, realistic fiction, and fantasy has a mind-numbingly brilliant premise: famous pirate Emer is cursed to live 100 dog lives before being born in the 20th century as a poor girl (Saffron) whose goal in life is to get to Jamaica to dig up her long buried treasure.
Best of all, it delivers in its execution, with a rich story spanning four centuries and several continents with a focus on two very different (albeit mystically linked) heroines. It manages the spectacular feat of being epic and intimate at the same time. An absolute delight.

Nothing but Ghosts by Beth Kephart
Melissa from Book Nut says: This book is a lot of things: it's a mystery, but not an edge-of-your-toes compelling mystery. Like everything else in the book, it's reflective and poetic. It's a ghost story, but not a scary, supernatural one. And yes, there is a boy, so it does qualify as a romance, but it's not a swoon-worthy, heart-fluttery one. Across all of these genres, the one thing that stands out about this book is Beth Kephart's use of the English language. Haunting, beautiful in its simplicity, and effortlessly descriptive — her choice of words is what keeps you turning pages, what you remember, and what you savor when you finish this book.

Broken Soup by Jenny Valentine

Kelly Holmes from YAnnabe says: Rowan is a girl dealing with grief and a depressed mother when a mysterious boy comes into her life. Sounds like a downer, but it's not. Rowan isn’t huddled in a corner, sobbing until dehydration sets in. She’s getting on with her life.
I think about this book at least once a week. If I’m at home when it happens, I wander over to the bookshelf and crack it open to re-read whatever part I was remembering. And it gets better every time.

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick
Lorena from YAthenaeum says: What's not to like about Hush, Hush? If its amazing cover doesn't just make you grab for it, the loaded content within its pages surely will. I literally couldn't put it down. The characters are so intricately crafted, but in ways that you just wouldn't expect.
Patch, at a first glance, seems like your everyday bad boy, but the layers of his character are just beautifully interlaced — I honestly felt he'd fly right out of the book. Hush, Hush isn't all rainbows and romance, though. It's dark, it's deep, and the mystery of the story is so rich, the whole "one more chapter before bed" thing isn't going to work. It's got action, it's got romance, it's got mystery, revenge, chases, true love, miracles. Point is, it has just a little bit of everything for everyone to enjoy.